Appoint the Local Government Commission now!

Dear Editor,

President David Granger’s flagrant disregard for the previously submitted list of nominees for Chairman of the Guyana Election Commission (GECOM) from the Leader of the Opposition is in actuality a deliberate procrastination to name the new Chairman of GECOM.

As a consequence, the electoral system is moving further and further into dangerous waters, and the impact of this would be far-reaching.

The recently conducted ninth continuous registration exercise comes up for scrutiny, since it is a cycle being conducted without the Chairman of GECOM being in place. Further, there have been serious complaints regarding the significant wasting of money spent during the period, in addition to the outcry from members of the public who have complained bitterly about the attitude of some of the GECOM staff. The humongous costs incurred for the exercise stands out for reasons associated with the paucity of information released.

It is also notable that, after the continuous registration, the claims and objections period was supposed to flow almost automatically. However, that was not the case on this occasion. GECOM commenced the claims exercise earlier this week, and it appears as though the objections exercise will commence after two weeks. These expensive exercises by GECOM are normally to be followed by elections. In essence, justification must be demanded for conducting the ninth cycle at this time when there are no pending elections, given the fact that this exercise would have to be repeated before any new elections.

In the absence of a functioning GECOM, it is clear that the GECOM Secretariat cannot hold any elections. Hence the numerous vacancies and issues in the Local Authority Areas are causing serious problems for the smooth running of the Local Authorities.

Further, there are many constituencies that need to have by-elections in order to complete the 2015 Local Government Elections. However, after the sound thrashing that The Coalition APNU/AFC received at the March 2016 Local Government Elections, they are doing everything to frustrate the smooth running of the NDCs.

The Local Government Areas are experiencing serious difficulties, and Guyanese are rightfully blaming the Government. The Eccles NDC has complained bitterly about the construction of a bridge in the Nandy Park /Eccles area which, because of its preferred specifications and associated costs, falls to have been awarded under the Regional Democratic Council. The RDC, having usurped the functions of the NDCs in this respect, awarded the contract to one of their cronies. Months beyond the passage of the expected project delivery time, the bridge has still not been built.

Further, the 2016 budget has provided for the construction of one health centre in the NDC area, and this is yet to materialise. It is sad to know that, after two years, the residents are still awaiting the construction of the Health Centre.

After the 2nd phase of the 9th cycle of continuous registration concludes through the completion of the claims and objections exercise, the Guyana Elections Commission would not have the authority to embark on any other cycle of registration unless the Commission is in place. This could happen only if and when the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission has been appointed.

So come May 2017, should the Commission not be in place, then the entire machinery of the Guyana Elections Commission would be shut down, and the only function of the Elections Commission would be that of identification cards’ distribution at all the permanent centres. The GECOM Secretariat would have no other mandate, but they have indicated the period would also be used to conduct staff training. The appropriate question therefore is: Staff training for what?

Appoint the Chairman from the list that would be submitted by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo. Appoint the local Government Commission now!

Sincerely,

Neil Kumar